I DO! – My Heavenly Father – June 19th

I DO
June 19, 2021

My Heavenly Father

Hebrews 12:5-11, ‘Or have your forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as His children? My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline, but don’t be crushed by it either. It’s the child He loves that He disciplines; the child He embraces, He also corrects. God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best. At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.’ (MSG)

I have spent so many wasted years missing out. Missing out on the goodness of my Father. I have known about God and called myself a Christian for likely fifty years but did not actually know Him. I have not understood the parental relationship He was seeking to have with me, His child, because I had not seen myself as a child of His, nor surrendered myself. It would take much loss for me to come to the end of me and allow Him to begin. I am amazed now with the extraordinary amount of patience the Father has expended toward me. I am so very grateful for His persistence.

I, like most humanity, am stubborn and abandoned to everything other than my own desires. Who wants discipline, says the parent, who is chasing after the toddler, trying to corral the strong will of the child and tether it into submission and surrender? What an oxymoron to discern the need for parental control with our own children, yet to obstinately question why our Heavenly Father should discipline and teach us, His children?! O Father God, how you have chased me around the arena, a lasso in hand, and a chiding voice whispering in my ear as you bridled me, as You saddled me with Your love, and broken me for my good. As You lead me around this field called Life, showing me the obstacles ahead for my good; as You introduce me to the boundaries You have placed for me so I do not wander ahead and apart from You; as You cause me to lie down in pastures and rest beside still waters, teach me to be gentle and obedient; as You lead, I will follow. I am so thankful for You! You are a good, good Father.

Proverbs 3:11-12, ‘My child, when the Lord speaks to you, never take His words lightly, and never be upset when He corrects you. For the Father’s discipline comes only from His passionate love and pleasure for you. Even when it seems like His correction is harsh, it’s still better than any father on earth gives his child.’ (TPT)

What a promise ‘I Do’ is! Whether we are committing to a person or simply being intentional in life, our word should be a cherished commodity. This month, journey with me in ‘I Do’ moments which are an oath, a vow, a pact, a pledge, an honorarium.